PHOENIX (AP) - The Pro Football Hall of Fame will have eight new members this summer.
Junior Seau Jerome Bettis Tim Brown, Charles Haley and Will Shields have been elected to Hall of Fame, along with senior selection Mick Tingelhoff and contributors Bill Polian and Ron Wolf.
Polian is considered the architect of the Buffalo Bills Super Bowl teams. He also built the first generation of the Carolina Panthers and won a Super Bowl with the Indianapolis Colts.
Polian said he was overwhelmed by the honor.
"It's really overwhelming. I mean never in a million years would I ever have thought that I would be here. This is just something that you look upon and these guys here, they're so far beyond my pay grade it's just, it's not even close. So I'm overwhelmed to be here.
"What this is about for me is the players and coaches that I've been so fortunate to be with over the years, and the biggest thrill tonight is to be able to share it with, obviously, with my family, but to have Jim Kelly and Peyton Manning here, too, because they're the reason I'm here."
Polian said former Bills coach Marv Levy will present him at the Hall of Fame on Saturday, August 8.
Seau was the only first-time eligible candidate to get in this year. He spent 13 of his 20 seasons with San Diego, made six All-Pro teams and was the Defensive Player of the year in 1992.
Bettis began his 13-season career by earning Rookie of the Year honors for the Rams. His 13,662 yards rushing rank fifth in history, and he had eight seasons of at least 1,000.
Brown ranked No. 2 in NFL history with 14,934 yards receiving, No. 3 with 1,094 catches, and No. 3 with 100 touchdown catches when he retired after the 2004 season.
Haley was the first player in NFL history to play on five Super Bowl-winning teams. He finished his career with 100 1/2 sacks and twice was an All-Pro, once at linebacker and once at defensive end.
Shields was a guard for Kansas City from 1993-2006, never missing a game in his 14 seasons. He was a first-team All-Pro three times, a second-team All-Pro four times, and was a member of the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 2000s.
